Uruguay striker Luis Suarez announces international retirement
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The former Barcelona and Liverpool striker is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of his generation.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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MONTEVIDEO – Uruguay icon Luis Suarez has no regrets after announcing his retirement from international football on Sept 2, confirming that he will hang up his boots following the 2026 World Cup home qualifier against Paraguay.
“Friday (Sept 6) will be my last match for my country,” the emotional 37-year-old forward told a press conference.
“The fact that it is my decision to retire and that I’m not retired because of injuries or that they stop calling me for one thing or another, that gives me a lot of comfort, it helps me individually.
“It was not an easy decision to make, but I do it with the peace of mind that I will give my maximum until the very last game of my (Uruguay) career.”
The former Barcelona and Liverpool striker is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of his generation and will retire from international football as his country’s top scorer with 69 goals from 142 appearances.
Suarez, who was infamously kicked out of the 2014 World Cup and handed a four-month ban for biting Italy’s Giorgio Chiellini, made his international debut in 2007.
The Inter Miami forward helped Uruguay capture the 2011 Copa America, where he was named Player of the Tournament, and would eventually represent the South American country in nine major tournaments.
He added that inspiring Uruguay to that Copa crown had been the high point of his career.
“I wouldn’t trade the Copa America title for anything, it was the best moment of my career,” he said.
A dynamic, skilful attacker with a lethal eye for goal, Suarez was also never far from controversy.
As well as the biting incident that ended his involvement in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, he was also one of the villains of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, when his cynical handball on the goal line denied Ghana what would have been a late winner in the quarter-finals.
He was sent off for that offence and Ghana subsequently missed the ensuing penalty, allowing Uruguay to sneak into the semi-finals after a penalty shoot-out.
Controversy also dogged Suarez throughout his club career, notably in 2011 when he was handed an eight-game ban in England for allegedly racially abusing Manchester United’s French defender Patrice Evra.
He would later help Uruguay qualify for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, and also featured in this summer’s Copa America, where he was used largely as a substitute by coach Marcelo Bielsa.
He scored his 69th international goal in a third-place play-off victory over Canada.
“My dream was for my children to see me win something important with the national team... that last goal was very nice for them and even though it wasn’t a trophy to take home, it was very nice for them,” he added.
Suarez has already said Miami will be his last club. He joined the Major League Soccer side in 2024 on a one-season deal to reunite with former Barcelona teammates Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba. AFP, REUTERS
